Love Acknowledged
by Risknight
Summary: There is a reason why they aren't together. I don't own The Big Bang Theory.
1. Leonard

**Dedicated to Tribeca. For no reason at all other than I felt like it. **

He loved her. She was everything he had ever dreamed of. He wanted her to love him, and she did. Just as much as she loved Raj, Howard, Amy and Bernadette. But she loved _him_ more. She loved _him_ with all her heart.

_He _was the one she sought out for advice.

_He_ was the one she never said "no" to.

_He_ was the reason she stayed.

And there were times he hated his best friend. There were times he wished his best friend was gone from their lives. But then he would remember that the only thing that kept her from moving back to Nebraska was her love for Sheldon. He watched them head to the door, laundry baskets on their hips. Sheldon was trying to get her to promise to use the correct amount of detergent. Penny was teasing him about the way he had folded his dirty laundry.

Leonard downed the rest of his beer and tried to unclench his jaw. He loved her. She loved Sheldon. Sheldon loved her. And he was the only one who saw it clearly. He sighed and headed to the couch. He dreaded the day when they realized how they felt about each other. Because he knew he would have to step aside for the two most important people in his life. After all, he loved them both.


	2. Amy

She loved him. Despite his quirks and phobias. Regardless of his rules and routines. He was the first man to ever take a real interest in her. He brought her into his circle of friends. Thanks to him she had friends, romance (sort of) and she was no longer lonely.

She desired him. She had spent three years diligently working on breaking down his walls. She wanted a real relationship with him, an intimate relationship with him. She wasn't stupid, though. She knew he cared for her. She knew he was faithful. She also knew he loved _her._ He loved her bestie, and even more heartbreaking, Penny loved him back.

But they were both utterly clueless about how they felt. With each passing year, her hope grew that they were never going to realize it. Some days, she was very guilt ridden because she knew that as a true friend she should step aside and let them be together. But fear always stopped her. Fear of being alone. Fear of abandonment. Fear of losing them both.

She watched Sheldon pour them both a cup of tea as he explained about his latest theory. She almost hoped they would never figure it out. She almost wished they would.


	3. Sheldon

He loved her. She was one of the most important people in his life. And he knew she loved him as well. They had acknowledged it only once. One intense night, after she and Leonard had broken up, they had broken down and kissed passionately. He had gone over for a dinner of spaghetti with a cut up hot dog and suddenly the walls between them had crumbled into dust.

They had explored each other's bodies with an intensity that bordered on compulsion. They had talked about their feelings, their hopes, and their desires long into the night. Hour upon hour of poignant communication and tender lovemaking. When day broke, they sealed away that love for good. They stored it away as a memory and pledged to never speak of it again.

They weren't stupid. They knew that sometimes, love wasn't enough. However much they wanted it to work, they were too different, too opposite. They had nothing in common but the way they felt. The most they could truly ever be was friends. _That_ they could make work. Being friends, taking care of each other, was the best they could offer each other. It was the only way to keep each other close without losing it all. He loved her enough to never love her again.


	4. Penny

She loved him. She loved his mind. She loved his drive. She loved his inner strength. She loved him enough to not love him.

She treasured the memory of their one and only night together. She treasured every word, every touch, every kiss they had shared. One intense, emotional night when they had cut free of their restraints and loved each other wholly.

But she was realistic. Loving each other would cost them everything. Sometimes love wasn't enough. If they chose each other, they would lose the people who mattered most to them. They would destroy everything they had built here. Leonard would be devastated. If Leonard left, Howard and Raj would follow. If Howard left, Bernadette went, too. And Amy? It would crush her. Not even for each other could they do that to the people they loved.

So, they settled for friendship, and their memories. They loved each other dearly. But they loved their friends, too. And as Sheldon's hero said (and heaven help her if he found out she was paraphrasing) the needs of the many were what mattered.


End file.
